


Light Shower

by baltshake



Category: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Birthday, Birthday Fluff, Camping, Fluff, M/M, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-12
Updated: 2016-08-12
Packaged: 2018-08-08 06:22:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7746532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baltshake/pseuds/baltshake
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A camping trip for his birthday? Cloud would rather not. Still, it's hard to resist the pull Zack has and what he sees while under the night's sky will make everything worth it and more.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Light Shower

If someone had asked Cloud what his birthday plans for that year were, camping would probably second to the bottom of the list, beaten only by ice fishing. As he came from a cold climate where it was snowy almost year round, the idea of sleeping outside was very unappealing. There were no heaters outside and, from what his milder climate friends had told him, bugs would come out and eat you alive. No thank you very much, he’d rather stay inside for the day.

As it so happened, Cloud was now experiencing his second day of camping with Zack and trying to not have as much fun as he was. His pride would crumble if word got out that he was enjoying himself over something like this! But even more than that, he really was having a lot of fun.

_ _ _

It had been Zack’s suggestion, of course. The 1st Class had gotten the green light to take off for a few days and he’d done some wheedling and begging to get Cloud off too. Most of the camping gear was standard issue for SOLDIER except the food and the sleeping bags that Zack had specially bought.

The fact that there were two sleeping bags was just for show as the two always shared one.

Cloud had been a lot harder to convince than any executive but he also had to give in after awhile. Zack had just looked so sad and Cloud had too soft a heart for his boyfriend to deny him this! Even though he knew it’d be terrible.

The very first terrible activity was setting up camp which actually turned out to be not so bad. Zack sang when he worked and whistled when he wasn’t, including singing out directions for Cloud to follow that always made him laugh. It was surprisingly quick work and even Cloud had to admire how nice their tent and things were arranged. There didn’t even seem to be that many bugs around!

Chopping wood was next on the menu but Zack had brought two axes and challenged Cloud to a contest where whoever chopped the most pieces in five minutes didn’t have to make dinner that night. Cloud was always up to a competition and didn’t even mind that Zack let him win, figuring it was his plan to cook all along.

After a delicious meal, washing up, and a walk around the area that revealed a large river nearby, Cloud settled in for the night with a content hum. Well, maybe it wasn’t so bad after all. It couldn’t be if he got to cuddle Zack like this every night.

_ _ _

Day two had been even more fun so far. After breakfast, Zack had made them up some sandwiches and they went to the river where they alternated between swimming, fishing, and more exploring. Cloud hadn’t mentioned it, but he was really rather touched by the thought Zack had put into his birthday. While he enjoyed exploring and knowing his surroundings, he also loved the newer thrill of swimming – a rare treat in a wintery climate – and found the concentration and quiet fishing provided to be relaxing. 

Dinner that night was even better than last night had been, probably owing to the success they both had in catching a large fish apiece. Zack had even managed to sneak some birthday cake into their supplies and admitted to Cloud that he’d never made one before. That could have been why it was too sweet but Cloud didn’t mind in the least bit.

“Why are you grabbing a sleeping bag?” Cloud asked, frowning a little as Zack pulled the unused one from the back of the truck. Did his boyfriend want to sleep alone that night? That made him feel a bit put out but he would understand if that’s what Zack wanted.

“Nah. It’s just more comfortable laying on this than directly on the ground.” Zack gave him a big grin and added, “Help me lay this out, would’ja?”

Perplexed but not put out, Cloud helped spread out the sleeping bag then laughed when Zack tugged him down on it to tickle him. “Zack, stop it!” he squeaked, pushing away the other’s hands but kept laughing for a moment even after all Zack had done was just hold him. 

He did eventually settle down and rested his cheek against Zack’s chest as he relaxed. He must have closed his eyes and dozed off a little at some point because, next he knew, Zack was tapping his cheek gently to wake him up.

“Do we gotta go back into the tent?” Cloud asked drowsily and smiled when his forehead was given a tender kiss.

“We can in a bit but you should look up first,” Zack said, smiling as he nodded towards the sky. “Your present’s up there.”

Brow furrowing, Cloud blinked the last of the sleep out of his eyes and looked up. Night had already fallen when they were eating the cake and the clearing around them gave them a great view of the stars. They were nice looking, he supposed. You didn’t really see stars in Midgar with all the smoke in the air-

“Oh!” Cloud’s eyes went wide as he watched a star shoot across the sky. But Zack couldn’t have known there would be a shooting star right that second, could he? That was when Cloud realized that there were more shootings stars and knew that so many had to be something else.

“Heard a month or so ago that we’d get a meteor shower today,” Zack said softly, his eyes bouncing back and forth between the sky and Cloud’s face, unsure what was the best to look at. “You probably saw stuff like this all the time back in Nibelheim but…well, I wanted to see it with you. Thought it might be nice.”

Cloud was already shaking his head a little before Zack was even halfway done talking. “First time I’ve ever seen one,” he said softly, still watching the meteors streak by. “I always fell asleep before they could fall.” He was quiet again for a moment, feeling breathless at the phenomena occurring. “Thank you, Zack. I’m happy we got to see it together.”

He could feel Zack grinning from where he’d pressed his mouth to Cloud’s forehead again. “Yeah. Happy Birthday, Cloud.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is for Day 5 of Clack Week! The prompt was "Happy Birthday, Cloud!" so I went with "camping" and "watching a meteor shower". There actually will be a meteor shower tonight where I live but the best times to watch it are from 1AM - 4AM and I have to wake up at 7:30 in the morning for my first day of work. ;3; I hope the people that can go enjoy it and that it's as beautiful as everyone is hoping it'll be!! As always, comments and critiques are welcome! :D


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